This invention relates to a roof ventilating device which is provided with a movable member that prevents wind driven snow or rain from entering the building.
Roof ventilators have been used to prevent dangerous heat build-up in the attics or upper floors of houses and other structures. One such roof ventilator is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,949,657. The roof ventilators disclosed in this patent provide a cover for an elongated opening cut along the ridge of a roof. The ventilating device covers the opening, and provides relatively narrow passages to vent heat from the interior of the structure. The passages are designed to be small enough so that entry of moisture is restricted. However, during storms, wind driven rain or snow could be forced into the roof opening through the passages if the wind is strong enough.
According to prior U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/269,916, filed Jun. 30, 1994, a movable member has a pressure-responsive surface that responds to ambient winds speeds in excess of a predetermined level to move into a closed position closing the passages. Accordingly, entry of moisture into the structure is restricted. The movable member in this prior application is relatively inflexible. Furthermore, it has been learned that under certain atmospheric conditions, wind speed across the tip of the baffle and the top of the ventilating device can act to partially open the baffle even after it has been closed, thereby permitting moisture to enter the structure.
The present invention provides a movable member made out of cloth, which is relatively flexible and thus is able to close against the outer edge of the ventilating device more easily than the relatively stiff movable member disclosed in my prior application. Furthermore, the upper edge of the present invention terminates in a flexible cavity or xe2x80x9cbubblexe2x80x9d that extends longitudinally along the edge of the movable member. During storms, the movable member first moves into a position to close the vent openings, and the bubble is thereafter deformed against the upper edge of the ventilating device, thus providing a seal to assure that snow and moisture will not enter the vent passages. The movable member acts as weatherstripping that seals against the ventilating device in response to wind speed. Accordingly, the present invention of an elongated strip of cloth material having a bubble extending along one edge thereof may also be used as weatherstripping around the edges of doors and windows. Furthermore, the deformable bubble may be used in other types of ventilating device according to other embodiments of the invention, in which a flexible bubble is mounted on relatively stiff baffles used in other types of ventilators. The present invention also is substantially less expensive to manufacture than are other similar devices.
An alternative embodiment of the invention is disclosed wherein a movable member closes against a lower surface of a connecting member on the interior of the vent openings. The movable member may or may not include the bubble member and may also include slits for increased flexibility.
These and other advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description, with reference to the accompanying drawings.